Veneficus Est Scriptor Morbus
by Yonda628
Summary: When sudden surges of magical power appear one night, it causes Negi and the others to lose sleep. When they discover who it was & why they were emanating magic, they go down to the library to see if a certain blue-haired man is alright. However, when they see him, it appears to be nothing but a stomach ache, but little do they know that it will become a dire situation.
1. Introduction

**Ok, so you may or may not have noticed by the two stories I've posted, but sickfics are my specialty. I write them all the time, and I'm not that good at writing anything else. So, if you like to read sickfics like yours truly, we will become very good friends. If you don't read them all the time, we can still be good friends. If you absolutely hate sickfics, why are you reading this story? I'm just blabbing on now, so I'll stop talking :D**

**Better Summary: Ever wonder what keeps Albireo Imma down in the library, unable to leave his current dwelling? (Well, I did, and through my curiosity, this story was born キタ━━━(゜∀゜)━━━!) So did Negi and his group, and the story they heard was quite shocking and hard to believe. However, it truly happened and Albireo's been suffering the consequences of surviving the illness for ten long and agonizing years. ****  
**

(≧∇≦)/!

Dean Konoe was sitting at his desk, late at night, enjoying the tasks of an old man, such as drinking tea and gazing out the window. "Nights like this are always nice after a day of hard work."

He sat in his chair, staring at the dark night sky and its stars, twinkling like lights on a Christmas tree. However, the peaceful stillness was cut off by the door slamming open. He saw a short girl with long, blonde hair in a dress. Following close by, he saw a tall man wearing his pajamas, as well as four other children, one being a small boy, and the rest were teenage girls.

"Ah, Evangeline, what seems to be the problem?"

"Shut up, old man! Can you not feel that magic?! It's killing me!"

"Calm down, Evangeline," Takamichi Takahata said walking towards the desk, "It's bothering us all. Even Negi, Asuna, and Setsuna could feel it."

"Yeah, but what is it," Asuna asked. "I couldn't go to sleep because of it, and I have to deliver papers in the morning!"

"Yes, I know what you're all talking about, I can sense it too," the Dean confirmed. "But there's something about it. There's large amounts of it, that's for sure, but it seems-"

"Unintentional," Negi finished for the Dean.

"Yes, and large amounts of magic usually mean a threat of some kind, but unintentional means only one thing."

"What are you all talking about," Konoka questioned rubbing her eyes sleepily. "I didn't sense anything."

Almost exactly as she said that, a surge of obvious magic filled the room. They all stopped dead in their tracks, not blinking, not moving, not even taking the chance of breathing. Luckily, the surge didn't last long, but it felt like a lifetime.

"It's him, isn't it?"

Evangeline glanced at Takamichi, who returned it. "Yeah, it is. He's the only one at Mahora who'd be sending surges of magical power without meaning to."

"Who?"

"We should probably check on him. If _we _can sense it, his body's probably flooding with it, which means he's having a setback."

"WHO?!"

Takamichi, Evangeline, and the Dean all turned to them as they walked to the door.

"It's Albireo."

(╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻ ~_I feel like this when I have writer's blocks_

"What's wrong with Colonel-san?"

"It's a pretty long story."

"Tell us, professor Takahata."

"Well, a little over ten years ago, back when Ala Rubra was still in action, we were just lounging around one day when we noticed Al hadn't woken up and it was past noon. Al's not the type to sleep in, even on a day off like that, so we went to check on him. He woke up like anyone else would, but later that day, he got really sick."

"But Colonel-san's immortal like Eva-chan. How did he get sick?"

"That's what leads up to the whole magic thing. It's a magic problem. Anyone with magical powers like Al, or Negi, or Konoka, can get it, even Evangeline."

"That's also what led up to him being sealed in the library."

The four kids stopped. "Really, that's why he can't leave?"

"Yep, he can only leave when the magic tree is at its highest peak. If he doesn't leave then, the seal will throw off all his powers, and he'll have a serious backlash. If the tree is at its peak, then that magic will keep it all under control."

As they walked to the library, Asuna broke the silence. "Hey Eva-chan, why are you so worried? Isn't Colonel-san your enemy? Shouldn't you be laughing at him now?"

Evangeline didn't answer. Both she and Takamichi were deep in thought, reminiscing about that fateful day, ten years ago, when Ala Rubra was scared for the life of their friend. Even though he had achieved immortality, he could have died just as easily as a mortal.


	2. Day 1

**I check my stories daily to see if I have reviews and when I see the little number, I get really excited. So, reviews are something that make me very happy. I'm not asking everyone to review, because I don't most of the time. Any who, thank you Angel981 and Nippah for reviewing! :D (I got even more excited when I saw a review in Spanish.) And thank you for the advice if you gave it to me, I will put things in my story that my readers enjoy! As long as it's not too bad. Thank you though! **

**Sorry for putting off this update for so long D: tennis, band, and homework prevent me from typing.**

It was just like any other day, minus all the fighting, for the members of Ala Rubra. On days like this, they were the laziest people in the history of time. It was just Gateau, Eishun, Nagi, Takamichi, and Asuna on this particular day, and like what was said before, they were being as lazy as one can get.

"Ugh, there's nothing to do!" Nagi sat on the ground by the pier.

"I agree we haven't had to fight anything or rescue anyone, so there's really nothing for us to do."

"Well, we could try to contact Jack. He'd want to spar for a couple hours with you, Nagi."

"Nah, I don't really wanna spar."

"You could always try to find Evangeline. We all know she's been stalking you for a while."

"No."

"Hey, if you're bored, that'll fill up some ti-."

"Shut up, Gateau!"

Asuna sat close by Takamichi and watched the argument along with him. "Nagi-san," Takamichi exclaimed. "We can just go back home if you want."

"No, I don't wanna go back home… and stop using those stupid Japanese honorifics for me! I hate it!"

"I- I'm sorry, Nagi-sa- oh, I mean Nagi…"

The others started laughing at Takamichi's embarrassment when Nagi stopped suddenly and started looking around. The others noticed his sudden actions and stopped as well. "What's wrong Nagi?"

"I just realized something…"

"What?"

"… Where's Al?"

The others began to look around too and they all began to ask themselves the same question. Their blue-haired, smiling friend was nowhere to be seen. It was strange to them because usually, Albireo was always with them. If he wasn't, they always knew why, but today, he was just gone.

"Now that you mention it, I don't think Al left with us when we came down here," Eishun said.

"He was still in bed when we left," Asuna told them. They all stared at the young girl, her blue and green eyes obviously not understanding the severity of the situation.

"He was asleep still? Why would he sleep in so long, it was past noon when we left?"

Nagi and Eishun started to walk swiftly to their house, causing the rest to follow close behind.

┏(・o･)┛ ┗ ( ･o･) ┓ ┏ (･o･) ┛ ┗ (･o･ ) ┓ ┏(･o･)┛

Most of the members of Ala Rubra stormed into the house and straight to the room where Albireo resides. Nagi knocked on the door and got no reply. "Al, are you awake?" still no reply. Nagi twitched with frustration. Either Albireo was asleep, absorbed in a book, or ignoring him.

"Dammit Albireo Imma, answer the damn door!" Nagi slammed the door open and he immediately fell silent. He saw his immortal ally lying in bed, breathing slowly and peacefully like anyone would while they slept. Eishun and Gateau walked up behind Nagi.

"Is he _still_ asleep?"

"Yup, still."

They all walked in and gathered around the bed. It was very strange for Albireo to sleep in for so long, even on days like this. He was quite the morning person, unless it was a day where he hadn't slept in days. _Then_, they left him alone. However, this was not one of those days. Albireo fell asleep the previous night like he always did.

Albireo's eyes fluttered open at the sudden sound of his name. He glanced around, trying to see what or who was around him, but the images were blurry. He lifted his hands and rubbed his eyes.

"Hey, he's waking up!"

Albireo winced at the shouting of Nagi. Not just because he had just woken up, but because he was feeling… different. He didn't really know how to explain what he was feeling, but he all he knew was that it felt weird to him.

"Hey Al, we noticed that you were still in bed and came to check on you. Are you alright?"

Albireo nodded, not wanting to worry them with his slight headache, the fatigue he still had, and the malaise he was beginning to feel… 'Wait what…?' Albireo's eyes opened more at what just came to his train of thought. When was the last time he didn't feel well? Had that been in the last few centuries? He had lost track of the times he had gotten sick ever since the 17th century… or maybe it was before that. Albireo mentally groaned at his lack of mental organization.

"Are you still tired? I mean, you can keep on sleeping if you want."

Albireo nodded. "Ok, we'll leave you alone and let you sleep." And that's exactly what they did. Albireo tried to stay awake to figure out why he was feeling so off, but to no avail. His eyelids were far too heavy and his mind was far too foggy, thus leading to another bout of heavy slumber.

~~~ Paragraph breaker of epic proportions~~~

Eishun knocked on Albireo's door. "Hey Al, are you hungry? Dinner's ready."

Eishun opened the door and saw that Albireo was still in bed. "Holy crap, he's still asleep."

Eishun walked up to the bed and shook Albireo's shoulder. "Al, wake up." Albireo's eyes opened and he glanced up at Eishun, his eyes unfocused.

"Have you been sleeping this whole time?"

"No… I woke up a few times, but I fell back asleep."

"Well, are you hungry? Dinner's ready."

"No, I think I'll skip dinner tonight…"

"Really, are you feeling alright?"

"I'm fine; my stomach's just a little upset right now."

"Um, ok, well, if you feel worse, come get one of us."

"I will." And Eishun left.

Eishun had jinxed Albireo. Late into the night, Albireo did begin to feel worse. He had woken up in the middle of the night with strange, sharp pains in his abdomen. The pain was everywhere in his abdomen, but it felt like most of it was concentrating in his lower abdomen. He couldn't fall back asleep with that kind of pain and he was very hot and uncomfortable in the bed. Albireo sat up slowly, his muscles screaming at him for not using them all day. He groaned as the pain intensified with every move he made, but he somehow made it out of bed and on his way to the door.

He turned the doorknob when he began to feel dizzy. He grabbed the doorway and held his head, his eyes closed in hope of easing the spell, but to no avail. He staggered to the door closest to his.

"N-nagi…" Albireo groaned as he spoke. "Nagi… wake up, pl-please…"

Nagi yawned sleepily as he opened the door. "Hey Al, what's up? Are you finally waking up?"

Albireo stared at Nagi. "Nagi I… I don't-." Albireo swayed in the doorway.

"Al, what's wrong? Are you ok?" Nagi grabbed Albireo's shoulders and held him still. "You're staggering like you're drunk, what happened?"

Albireo leaned on Nagi, placing all his weight on Nagi. "I- I don't feel very… well…"

Albireo swayed once more before completely passing out in Nagi's arms.

_ I ran out of ideas for a breaker_

"Al, wake up!" Nagi placed a hand on Albireo's forehead. "Whoa, he's burning up."

Nagi dragged Albireo to his bed in his room, placing the blanket over him up to his waist. Nagi was panicking. He's never seen Al sick before, and he didn't know if what Albireo had was contagious, mild, or fatal. All he knew was that his ally was sick and that's all he was focusing on.

"Gateau, Eishun! I need your help, Al's sick!" Nagi knocked on all the doors and ran back to Albireo's room. He ran up to the bed and put a hand on Albireo's forehead. He was a furnace. His face was red from ear to ear, including a red tint on his forehead and on the tips of his ears.

"Nagi, what happened? What's wrong with him?"

"I don't know, he said he didn't feel well, he passed out, and he's got a fever."

Eishun put a cool hand on Albireo's forehead, causing the man to wake up. "Hey, can you tell me what's wrong, Al?"

Albireo glanced up at Eishun, trying to contemplate what he had just said. A few moments later, Albireo pointed to his stomach.

"Your stomach hurts?" Albireo nodded.

"Do you feel sick?" He nodded again.

"Ok, that's all I need to know. You can go back to sleep, Al." Albireo's eyes began to droop and soon he was out cold once again.

"You think he has it, don't you," Gateau asked. Eishun nodded.

"Has what, Eishun?"

"… It's this disease that wizards like Al and you, Nagi, basically anyone that uses magic, gets when the magic in their system just won't stay under control and there becomes too much for the body to handle. It affects different parts of the body, like the digestive system organs, lungs, brain, heart, etc. But there's something about it that makes it well known amongst wizards."

"And what is that?"

"… It can even kill immortals like Albireo and Evangeline. Luckily, the only time it kills is during the first seven days. If they live past the first week, then they live. However, not many people live through this. It's rare to survive this, almost _unheard of_."

"So Al has it in his stomach?"

"Yes, the organs in his abdominal cavity. We better stay in hear to keep an eye on him."

"We can take turns watching him," Gateau suggested, "while the others sleep."

They all agreed and moved blankets and pillows into Albireo's room. Nagi was the first to stay up and watch. He grabbed Albireo's hand and squeezed it gently, making sure not to wake up his ailing friend.

"Please be ok, Al. You've gotta be ok…"


	3. Day 2

**Hello again. Sorry this took me so long to update. I haven't had the time to just type it and finish it in one day. **

**There's some Latin in here that roughly translates to Wizard disease (magus morbo) and death of undying (mortem victura), but it says something different in English when you translate it from Latin to English. **

**Thank you for reviewing, anyone who did! :D And to Unyuu, thank you for the advice. I may or may not make another story about that, but I'm not really fond of eva x al. But if you're looking for it in this story, it won't be there because I already have this story planned out and almost fully hand-written. Sorry :(**

**I just realized that I've never said I don't own Negima, but it's sadly true... I don't... **

When morning came, Nagi began to wake up. His mind was still foggy and his body was stiff from sleeping in probably the most uncomfortable position. He sat up, stretched, and yawned sleepily. He glanced around the room and saw Eishun, Gateau, and Takamichi on the ground sleeping, and young Asuna on the end of the bed. He smiled at Asuna, but soon realized why everyone was in the same room, and that the reason why they were was no longer in the bed. Nagi jumped up from the chair and tripped over the leg, falling face first.

The door opened after he did this, and standing there was Albireo. "Nagi… what are you doing?"

Nagi lifted his head and saw the blue-haired man standing in the doorway. His long blue hair was released from its bound and falling gracefully down his back, which made him seem more androgynous than usual. "Where the hell have you been, Albireo Imma?!"

"… The bathroom…?"

"Why were you in there?!"

Albireo sighed. "I was doing what most people tend to do, Nagi… _bathe_."

Nagi noticed how Albireo's hair was actually wet, like he had taken a shower, and how he had changed clothes. "Well, don't leave suddenly like that. You scared the hell out of me."

"I'm sorry," Albireo said smiling, slightly amused at the situation. "You were all asleep and I didn't want to wake you~"

"Well, why not?"

"You all looked so peaceful and adorable~ I couldn't bring myself to do it!" Albireo chuckled happily, like he always does. Nagi pouted at Albireo, but was glad to see his friend awake and productive today.

Albireo walked to the bed and sat on the edge, making sure not to wake Asuna. "So, are you feeling alright?"

"Yes, I feel absolutely fine."

"That's good-"

"Don't get your hopes up Nagi, I know exactly what's wrong with me and I will look and feel like I'm dying later today. I'm always going to feel fine early in the mornings for the first few days."

Nagi's expression changed in a matter of seconds. Albireo took note of that and smiled. "But it's alright, I'll be fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure."

"I don't believe you. Eishun and Gateau told me that this can kill people even like you, Al! Do you expect me to just sit back watch you suffer through that, not even knowing what will happen to you?!"

"As a matter of fact, I do, Nagi. There's nothing you can do to stop what will happen. What will happen, will happen, whether or not it's against what you desire."

"But you could-."

"Yes Nagi, I could die, I knew that already," Albireo said tying his hair back. "I've known that I could of this if I ever got it long before you ever came into existence."

Nagi glared at Albireo, who stared back with his blue eyes, which were starting to get very foggy. "Fine, you win. I'll stop."

Albireo lay back down on the bed, laying his head on the pillow. "No you won't…"

Nagi's eyebrow twitched with frustration. "You know something Al-." He stopped in mid-sentence when he noticed Albireo was sleeping, his chest rising and falling consistently. He sighed to himself and sat back in the chair. Suddenly, the others began to awake from their deep slumber.

"Hey Nagi, what are you doing up?"

"I don't know. I just woke up before everyone."

"Has Al been sleeping this whole time?"

"Nope, he was awake before I was. He took a shower, changed, and fell back asleep a few seconds ago."

Nagi glanced back at Albireo who opened his eyes and stared back. He smiled and winked at him, closing both eyes and turning his head away from Nagi. Nagi smirked at his immortal friend. "C'mon, we should all start getting around for the day.

（‐＾▽＾‐）オーホッホ

Eishun was in the kitchen making breakfast while the others sat around the table. "Is it almost ready, Eishun," Asuna whined.

"Yes, Asuna, it's almost ready."

"'You think Al will want some," Gateau questioned.

"Hmm, I didn't really think about that. I figured he just wouldn't want any since he's not feeling so great. I'll go ask him."

Eishun walked out of the kitchen and over to Albireo's room. He knocked on the door, but no one replied. He knocked on the door again; still no response. He nearly opened the door out of a small feeling of panic when the door opened seemingly on its own. He looked inside and saw Albireo standing in front of him, looking far worse than he did the night prior. Compared to how he looked earlier that same morning, it looked like his health went to hell in a hand basket. His face was the same color as the cloak and vest he wore, his face was flushed red and there were beads of sweat dripping from his face and hair, his bangs sticking to his forehead from the sweat. His eyelids were heavier than usual, not like his usual expression. His eyes seemed wearier, like something was exhausting him more every hour. In fact, you could see his fatigue just by looking at him, even from a distance. He leaned against the doorway, putting all his weight on the wall and all his concentration on not collapsing.

"Oh my God, Al, are you ok? You look terrible!" Eishun lifted his hand to feel Albireo's forehead, but Albireo stopped him and shook his head.

"It's 105.7…"

"And you haven't eaten anything all day, Al. With a fever that high, you'll just feel worse! You're lucky you're immortal, Al, you can last longer under conditions like that-."

"Eishun..."

"But this isn't just a regular fever, Al! This is Magus Morbo, which is also called Mortem Victura. It kills the undying, Al!"

"I know, Eishun, but-."

"You're scaring the crap out of the rest of the group, and if you don't eat at some point, their stress will-."

"Eishun!" Eishun stopped talking. "I know all of that already. I've seen this disease more times than you. I know all the titles this illness has, I know what it does to people, and I've seen people both live and die from it. Now, why did you knock on my door? I didn't have to get up just to hear you tell me stuff I already knew, did I?"

"Oh, n-no, I just wanted to ask if you wanted something to eat. I wasn't sure if you were up for anything."

"Well, I know I should eat, but I'm not sure if it's a good idea, stomach-wise."

"I can always make you something easy to stomach, like soup, or maybe even just some tea."

"Hmm… tea would be nice."

"What kind of tea?"

"Any kind is fine."

"Alright, I'll make that and get it to you as soon as possible."

"Thank y-." Albireo grimaced, wrapping an arm around his abdomen. Eishun was taken aback by the sudden actions and he instantly became worried.

"Al, what's wrong?"

Albireo stumbled back into his room and doubled over on the ground. Eishun followed him inside and placed a gentle hand on his back, trying his best to soothe his pain-ridden friend. However, Albireo knew all he could do to ease the pain was waiting as his body did what it could to control the magic in his system. Although the time was not that long (barely a full minute), as the days pass by, the magic will keep increasing in levels to the point where his body doesn't need it all and he won't be able to control it. That excess magic will continue to put pressure in his abdominal cavity and the organs there until the week finishes, or he's internally torn to ribbons.

When the episode finished, Albireo sat up and exhaled deeply. He felt even more exhausted and felt even worse. There was even a lingering ache in his lower abdomen, nearly going down further into his hips, which was, not so much painful, but undoubtedly uncomfortable.

"Are you ok? Do you want me to get something?" Albireo shook his head.

"Do you still want some tea?"

Albireo glanced up at Eishun and nodded. "Ok, I'll get go make that. You should get back into bed and rest."

Albireo stood up, wobbled a bit, but soon made it back to his bed. "Where are the others," Albireo asked quietly.

"They're outside, probably about to kill me for not serving food yet."

Albireo smiled at the comment and lay back on the pillow. "Well, I don't want to be the reason for them having to wait."

"Well, they can wait a little longer, while I make your tea."

Albireo blinked a weak smile on his face. "Thank you, Eishun…" And he was asleep instantaneously.

Eishun left the room and went back to the others. "Where were you? Did it take that long to ask a question?"

"No, I asked and he answered, but he suddenly had this bout of pain and I made sure he was ok."

"… Well, is he?"

"Yeah, he's fine. He's asleep again, but I'm going to make him some tea."

"Is lunch ready yet?"

"Yes, it's ready. I'm not going to take the time to serve it, so help yourselves. Just be sure to leave me some."

Nagi, Takamichi, and Asuna all jumped up and ran to the kitchen. Gateau walked up to Eishun, who was making tea. "Do you think he'll make it?"

Eishun poured the hot water. "You know… I really can't say for sure."

He stirred the tea and picked up the cup. "But I know one thing for sure; he does _not_ like to be lectured about this disease."

"Well, I wouldn't like it either if I was a 2,000 something (or somewhere around there) year old man being lectured by men in the double digits." The two of them laughed and took the tea to Albireo's room, knowing that was probably one of the few moments they could joke around and laugh for the next 5 days.


	4. Day 2 continues

**New Chapter Finally! This one wasn't exactly how I originally wrote it, so I had to think of something new, which took me a while. I apologize greatly :( But I'm glad I managed to finish it. Thanks for the reviews and patience! :)**

**I do not own Negima at all.**

As the day passed by, hour by hour, the pain got gradually worse. However, even when the pain peaked, he kept it a secret from the rest of the Crimson Wing and suffered as quietly as possible. Each minute felt like a lifetime to Albireo and he had no clue how to ease the pain, let alone stop it. When evening fell, the pain eased to the point of being tolerable. Albireo sat up in the bed and stared at the clock.

_"5:45 pm…"_ Albireo yawned and stood up from the bed. He walked over to the door and looked both ways down the hall, one being a dead-end and the other leading to the couch in the living room. Asuna was walking to the couch when she saw Albireo.

"Al, you're awake." She ran over to him and glanced up at him. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine, thank you, Asuna."

"Are you sure, you've been in your room a while."

"I'm positive."

Asuna pouted, but eventually walked away, leaving Albireo standing there alone. He started walking around the living room slowly since he was pretty stiff from lying in bed for so long. Before he could even reach the couch, the rest of the Crimson Wing came running from another room, nearly tackling their sick friend.

"Al, how are you feeling? Are you alright? I'm so glad to see you awake!" Who else would shoot you down with a rapid gunfire of questions? Only Nagi. Nagi embraced Albireo around the neck tightly, causing Albireo to claw weakly at his arms.

"Nagi," he whispered softly, "Nagi, I- I can't-."

"What, you can't what?"

"I – I can't… br-breathe…"

Nagi quickly took his arms off of him. "Oh, I'm sorry; I guess I got a little too excited."

Albireo smiled. "No, it's alright. I have to become acclimated to life again, and by that, I mean a life away from my room."

Nagi dragged Albireo to the couch and they began to chat against poor Al's will. Eishun and Gateau stood in the kitchen doorway

"He seems to be feeling a little better," Gateau whispered.

"Don't get too excited. I'll be willing to bet by the time night falls, it will be exactly the same as when it started."

Gateau inhaled his cigarette, the end of it lighting up slightly, and exhaled a cloud of smoke. "Well, I guess we'll just wait."

_**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Negima?!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**_

The two of them glanced at Nagi, who had been talking for nearly two hours now, and Albireo, who was sitting, listening, and smiling every now and then. It was nice to see the two chatting, but Albireo looked weaker, paler, and pain-stricken. It was obvious that Albireo was worsening and very quickly.

"It's been pretty boring without you out here, Al. Eishun always scolds me if I do something stupid and you're not out here to stand up for me." Nagi pouted

Albireo chuckled. "Well, for now, don't do stupid things. Even though I stand up for you, that doesn't mean I don't think they're stupid."

Nagi looked offended. "They _aren't_ stupid!"

"Yes, they are… The only difference between Eishun and I is that I know you just want a little fun."

Nagi pouted and turned his head. "They're not stupid," he mumbled.

Albireo smiled and stood up. "I'm going back to bed."

"Already, are you sure you don't want something to eat?" Albireo nodded and walked back to his room, closing the door gently.

"Hmph, if he wants sleep then we'll give it to him."

Albireo slid down the wall, his breathing heavy. He didn't like how the pain hit him unexpectedly and when it did, it hit him hard and for long periods of time. He sat out there for an hour and a half as the pain worsened. Albireo managed to stand up and sit on his bed. "Looks like I won't be sleeping for a while…"

_**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Negima?!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**_

"Damn it, I was right..." Albireo stared out his window from his bed, hugging his pillow and sweating like crazy. The fevers liked to hit him hardest at night, when no one was awake except poor, miserable Al. The pain in his stomach wasn't easing and hadn't stopped since he had woken up at 5:45 the previous day. As a matter of fact, the pain was worse.

Albireo lay on his pillow and sighed. He was annoyed by this and all he wanted was for it to end. He was lost in thought when a searing pain tore through him. Caught completely off guard, he gasped and embraced the pillow, waiting for it to pass ever so slightly… but it didn't. All Albireo could do was wait; wait for slumber to overwhelm him and take him off into a painless few hours.

"Waiting's hopeless," Albireo whined and buried his face in the white pillow.


	5. Day 3 and 4

**_I'm sorry for not updating fast, but school is over and that means more free time for yours truly. Now it's just me and this story (plus a few others I might post about different things). Hooray for midnight posts! Hope you guys enjoy this chapter :)_**

**I don't own Negima… I wish I did, but I don't… sadness…**

The pain continued into the next morning, refusing to let poor Albireo sleep. Now in pain and horribly sleep deprived, Albireo laid in his bed, his eyes closed. He let out a heavy sigh when he felt a stabbing pain, worse than the pain of the prior day. There was no doubt in his mind that the pain was going to worsen as they week progressed, but it still caught him off guard. The pain didn't ease and Albireo buried his head in the pillow once again when Nagi slammed his door opened, making Albireo jump slightly.

"Hey Al, you awake yet?"

Albireo groaned in agony and irritation at his young ally's enthusiasm. How could someone be so happy so early in the morning? "What are you doing up so early?"

"Early? What do you mean early? It's 4:00 in the afternoon!" Albireo shot upward and winced at another dose of suffering. Nagi noticed the change in Albireo's expression and grew worried. "Hey, are you ok?"

Albireo nodded and stood from the bed. Nagi wanted to ask where he thought he was going, but couldn't find the words. So, all he did was watch Albireo walk out the door, and come back a few minutes later. Nagi almost asked again, this time he was sure he could find the words, but Albireo beat him to it saying, "I went looking for the others, Nagi."

"Oh…" Nagi and Albireo stood in awkward silence for a while. Albireo wasn't so much _awkward_… more like extremely… **_confused_**. Why was Nagi acting so awkward? Nagi didn't know the _meaning_ of the word awkward, let alone how to act as if he had felt the embarrassing feeling multiple times.

"What's wrong, Nagi? Why do you seem so uncomfortable?"

"Wha- I'm not uncomfortable."

"Yes, you are."

"No, I'm not."

"I think you are," Albireo teased.

"I am not!"

"Hmmm… yeeaaaaaahhh, you are~" Albireo laughed at how flustered Nagi was getting. He was glad his illness wasn't changing everything about the young redhead, and that made him smile. For a slight moment, he couldn't even feel the debilitating pain.

But that changed _real_ fast.

As he laughed, it was suddenly cut off by a feeling of overwhelming nausea. Albireo's eyes widened at the pain and he stood still. Nagi panicked at the sudden actions and slaughtered Albireo with panicky questions. Albireo ignored all of them and stumbled over to the trashcan beside his bed. Nagi finally understood what something meant, and he followed Albireo, who began to throw up, his head submerged in the plastic container. Nagi knelt beside his friend and massaged his back in small, slow circles. Albireo tensed at the action due to surprise, but relaxed when he realized it was just a helpful hand. The bout of vomiting ceased after what seemed like ages, but the nausea lingered. Albireo lifted his head from the wastebasket and coughed. He saw the disgusting tar-like substance in the trashcan and moved it back towards the bed. He just barely noticed the spots of blood in different places in the foul matter that just came from his intestines, and managed to hide that fact from Nagi.

"Al, are you ok? Oh my God, that stuff looked nasty."

"Yes, I'm fine… I'm sorry you had to witness that though."

"No, that doesn't bother me at all. I'm not a prick like Eishun."

"And I won't tell Eishun you said that," Albireo said smiling. "Now, you should go back with the others. I don't want to take away from your daily routines."

"No, I want to be here to help you." Albireo's eyebrows rose at the statement. "You are my friend, and friends don't abandon each other just because the other is sick and they don't want to deal with that. The others would say the same thing."

Albireo couldn't help but feel touched at those words. In all his years of living, he had never, not once in his many centuries of life, had a friend actually be… well, a friend. He figured he could get used to that rather quickly. "If you insist…"

Nagi smiled and sensitively punched his friend in the shoulder. "So, what do you want to do? Are you up for anything, like a game?"

Albireo sat and thought for a while, but didn't answer when the pain surged slightly enough to bother him. He sat in silence, as if he was thinking, but he was really trying to will his discomfort before Nagi noticed. Why did Nagi have to be such a worrier? Albireo had never been so burdened by masking his sufferings as he was when Nagi was around. Wow, Nagi worried like a woman. Pfft, and Albireo thought _he_ was the girly one. "You know, I don't think I'm mentally up for a game. I'd love to play one, but I've been so tired…"

"Oh, well, that's alright. You can sleep and I'll leave if you wa-."

Albireo gasped and crumbled to the ground, despite already sitting on the ground. His arms wrapped around his abdomen and he held back screams of pain. Nagi, taken back by the movements of Albireo, reached out for his friend to make sure he wasn't _dying_.

"Al, what's the matter?" Albireo began to shake and he curled further into the fetal position. Nagi lifted Albireo from the ground by his arms and placed him on the bed, watching Albireo curl up on the bed. "I'll go get Eishun or Gate-."

"No!" Albireo grabbed Nagi's wrist and gripped his hand with great force. "Stay… p-please…"

Nagi was pretty dense at times, but he wasn't stupid enough to see that Albireo didn't want him to leave. He wanted him to stay, and Nagi wasn't going to turn that away. He was his friend, and friends don't let friends writhe in pain alone.

Albireo groaned, almost whimpered, and clutched the young man's hand even tighter. "Shh, I'm right here, Al… I won't leave." Nagi rubbed Albireo's back and held his hand. He hoped that he would never have to see anyone like this again, especially a friend as a close as Albireo Imma.

About 45 minutes passed and Nagi was so engrossed in easing his comrade's distress that he didn't notice how Albireo had fallen into slumber. Nagi let his friend's hand slip from his fingers and down to the bed, and stood from the bed. He pulled the blanket up towards Al's shoulders and noticed the red tint in his face.

Nagi walked out of the room and to the bathroom. He grabbed a bowl that was already there (he'd have to ask about that later), filled it with cold water, and grabbed a few clean washcloths. He walked back to the room, placed the bowl beside the bed, and soaked a washcloth in the water. He placed it on Al's forehead, who was just barely fazed by the sudden chill, but relaxed even more so than before.

Nagi grabbed a chair and sat beside Albireo's bedside. As he stared hollowly at the blanket, he whispered, "If this is what he's like on day 3… I don't think I'm ready for the rest of the week, Gateau."

Gateau chuckled at the comment. "You'll be alright, Nagi. You've been a lot of help for Al just by being here. I know he appreciates your company when the pain gets really bad."

Nagi smiled at the fuzzy feeling he got when hearing Gateau compliment his friendly actions. "It feels different taking care of someone who's been saving my ass for so long."

"Welcome to the world of adulthood, Nagi…"

_**_Negima?!__**

The next day was a lot like day 3, the only change was Albireo slept more. He woke up maybe a total of six times the whole day, but slept and slept and slept for the whole 24 hours. Eishun was concerned for their blue-haired companion, and wondered why he was so sleepy.

"His body is preparing itself for something…" Eishun and Nagi turned to Gateau. "Al sleeping this much means only one thing… that tomorrow's gonna be a bad day for him."

"Aww, c'mon! I just got done with two freaking days of this!"

"Well, be prepared for the rest of the week, because what you witnessed is only child's play compared to how he's going to feel once he wakes up tomorrow…"


	6. Day 5

**Hooray for late night updates! And I still don't own Negima.**

Albireo awoke with an explosion of pain. He inhaled sharply and his breathing became labored. He bundled himself up in his blanket as the spasm refused to ease back on the unpleasantness, not to mention the fact he was freezing. He gazed out his window up at the sky as his pain intensified, and he noticed a full moon had risen quite a while back, so it was probably around midnight or so. He sighed at the fact he had a whole night of this, when he heard a loud British accent calling the name of his young companion.

"NAGI, WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?!" Albireo sat up slowly and painfully to stare out the window at who he knew for sure was none other than Evangeline A.K. McDowell. _Of course_ she would be here at midnight. _Of_ _course_ she would be here during the full moon. _Of_ _course_ she'd be here when Albireo was far too ill to do anything to torment her.

_Of __**freaking**__ course!_

_"_NAGI, YOU BETTER GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE!" Where was Nagi? Probably asleep somewhere close by. He turned and behold, the Thousand Master curled up on the floor beside Asuna. Albireo smiled at the sleeping girl and turned back to Evangeline. He wasn't sure what to do. Should he wake up Nagi? Should he take action despite his failing health? Ugh, being ravaged by fever made his mind foggy, and Albireo didn't like it at all.

"NAGI!"

Albireo opened his window. "Kitty, I believe people are trying to sleep around here…"

"Who asked you? I'm here for Nagi, not your sorry, girly ass."

"Well that's too bad, because this sorry, girly ass knows where the Thousand Master is." Evangeline's eyebrow twitched at his sarcasm and teasing. "And this sorry, girly ass doesn't really feel like telling you."

"Tell me, damn it!" Evangeline shouted at Albireo. Albireo mockingly sat and thought before shaking his head. "Tell me!"

Albireo shook his head again, a smile on his face. Evangeline grabbed Albireo's shirt and held him closer to her face in anger. The jolt of Evangeline's actions made the pain in Albireo's stomach and back blossom, causing him to wince despite himself. She noticed that and instead of using that to her advantage, she let go saying, "And what the hell is wrong with you?"

"Nothing…"

"Bullshit, Albireo Imma. You can't fool me with that act. You never show your discomfort in front of others unless it's really awful. Now cough it up… what is wrong?"

Albireo sighed and stared at her with exhausted blue eyes. "I have Magus Morbo…"

Evangeline gasped and stepped back. "D-does anyone else in your stupid little group have it?!"

"No, it's just me… It's in my stomach…"

Evangeline didn't know how to react to what Albireo had just told her. She hated the bastard, but not _that_ much. She would never wish that horrible disease on anyone, not even him or the Thousand Master, her two eternal enemies. She noticed the blue magic emanate from his body, mainly his mouth, as he sat on the bed and talked to her. "Your magic is bothering me…"

"Sorry, Kitty."

"Oh, would you just shut up about that nickname. It's gotten old really fucking quick!"

"Sorry, but I won't stop."

"Why not?"

"Because you hate it so much and it's so amusing to see you flustered~" Albireo giggled and patted her blonde hair. Out of anger, she slapped his hand away.

"What the hell is wrong with you? You know damn well how much I hate being patted on my head."

"You love it when Nagi does it~!"

"No I don't!"

"Yes, you do."

"I do not!"

"Yeeeeeessssssss you do." He dragged out the first word and smiled. "You lie worse than you flirt, which is very surprising."

Evangeline lunged towards Albireo. "I'LL MURDER YOU, YOU BASTARD!"

Albireo snickered at Eva's fury. "My, my, if you weren't but 4 feet off the ground, I'd actually be frightened."

Evangeline grabbed his ponytail and ripped it from its bound, causing it to fall gracefully down his shoulder. "You androgynous asshole; I'd challenge you to a fight if you weren't so sick."

"Well, thank you for being so considerate of me, Kitty," he sarcastically exclaimed. "It's the 5th day of my illness, and using magic would only plunge me further into pain."

Evangeline turned away and jumped down from the window. "I'll be sure Nagi knows you were here…"

Albireo closed the window and lay back down on the bed. Evangeline walked away from the house, thinking about her friend enemy and his current condition. "For emanating so much magic on the 5th day… that's surprising. Normal cases don't emit that much until the last day… and they usually die if it gets to that point, but then again, Albireo Imma isn't exactly the most normal man alive…"

Evangeline crossed her arms and kept walking. "That bastard better live…"

**_Negima?!_**

Nagi and Asuna woke up the next morning to find Albireo already awake. "Al, you're awake," Asuna said happily, but sleepily.

He smiled. "Yes, I've been awake for some time."

"How long," Nagi asked mid-yawn.

"Since 1:00 in the morning."

"What?! It's-." Nagi turned to the clock, "8:00 in the morning now. Why couldn't you sleep?"

"Oh, you know the pain started bothering me."

"Oh."

"And a certain vampire came looking for you."

"Oh God… Did she bother you?"

"No, she was going to bother you. I don't think she'll be a nuisance to us for the next few weeks…"

"Oh… well, alright."

Albireo relaxed against two huge pillows and began to read. Nagi walked over to the bed and grasped his hand. "Are you sure you're ok? I can sense something coming from you, But I don't want to worry Asuna."

"Don't worry about it, I'm fine." _For now…_

He nodded and walked about of the room, screaming for Eishun about breakfast. Asuna stood from the ground and sat on the chair. "How do you feel?"

Albireo closed his book and let his façade fall. "Terrible… I can't even remember the last time I felt so bad…" Albireo glared blankly at the book on his lap. "This pain… it was unbearable at times last night… I didn't want to bother you though, because I knew you'd be busy the next few days with everyone else."

"But you know I would have helped, right."

"Indeed I did, princess." Albireo began to read the book again, as if nothing was wrong. The pain attacked his abdomen, back, and even hips like little minefields of explosive spasms, but he kept his composure. But he couldn't keep it up for long, and Albireo grimaced at an outrageously sharp burst of pain. He draped one arm across his stomach and put slight pressure on it to remove some of the throbs. It didn't work, and the pain worsened.

"A-Asuna…"

"Yeah?"

"Go get… so- ah!-someone…"

"Who?"

"Anyone, just please, go get someone from out there…"

Asuna jumped from the chair and ran outside, shouting, "Nagi, Nagi!" Albireo hated to worry such a young girl, but he knew he had to. This pain was worsening and faster than he imagined.

"Al, what's wrong?" Albireo turned his head and Nagi read the agony all over his face. Nagi walked up to Albireo and sat beside him, waiting to aid his friend in any way he could. "Al, you need any-."

Albireo embraced Nagi around the torso and under the arms. Nagi was a little puzzled at his friend's desperation, but all he did was hug him in return, and rub his back again, knowing how well that relaxed Albireo the day before.

And that was all Nagi did, for hours until Albireo's body finally let him fall asleep. Once that happened, Nagi stayed by his side and made sure he was there for his friend whenever he woke back up.


	7. Day 6 and Morning of Day 7

**Another chapter! Thanks for all the reviews if you gave one :) and if you didn't... it really doesn't bother me. I hate it when people don't update because they didn't get reviews, so I'll update whether or not i do get reviews. The fact is people are reading it :) Hope you enjoy this chapter, because it's almost the end of the week for Al.**

**I still don't own Negima or any of the characters.**

Nothing in the world could've warned or prepared Albireo for the agony the awaited him the next morning. He woke up and immediately regretted doing so, being welcomed by spasm after spasm after spasm. All he did was lie in bed and wait for the pain to ease, but to his surprise and dismay, it never did. He pulled the blanket over his head and sighed heavily when his door opened.

"Hey Al, how do you feel?" Albireo didn't answer right off the bat. It was a stupid question anyways. I mean, how do they think he felt? Did they assume he would just get over this like a cold? Were they really that dense? Albireo scolded himself for thinking so harshly against his comrades. They asked that out of wishful thinking, knowing full well how miserable their blue-haired friend must have been.

"Like I want to kill myself," he mumbled under the covers. Man, did that seem tempting…

"Aww, don't say that, Al." It was Gateau and Eishun now. "Besides, you couldn't kill yourself if you tried."

"Could too…"

"Whatever, Al, but don't think like that. We don't want to scare Asuna." Asuna… he forgot about Asuna. The poor, young princess was all but calm after witnessing Albireo be slain by a few rounds of strong symptoms. He didn't want to worry her again… he didn't want her to have to suffer like that.

"And then there's Nagi." Albireo rolled his eyes. He was told earlier that Nagi left to go to the bathroom and ended up falling asleep on the couch on his way back. That man troubled himself too much over him. He hoped that if Nagi ever had children, they wouldn't be such worriers like the Thousand Master.

"Nagi is just going to have to get over his anxiety… He will, trust me."

"And if he doesn't?"

"I'll handle that day when it arrives." The two men chuckled at how Albireo said when.

"Well, if you need anything, just let us know."

"I will…" And the two left. Albireo removed the blanket from his face and inhaled deeply. Even immortals can take only so much lack of oxygen. But before Albireo could think of what to do next with his day, he dozed off into a light slumber.

**__Negima?!__**

"Why must I keep dozing off," Albireo cursed to himself. Whenever he nodded off in the slightest bit, the pain intensified, forcing Albireo to awaken. Sometimes it even liked to tease him and stay as a dull, yet painful ache. But the pain he hated most was the one that just hit him like a ton of bricks, and then it refused to lessen its intensity.

That's the pain that was kicking his ass at the moment. He rolled over onto a large pillow and embraced it like a stuffed animal. Burrowing his face in it further, he put all his energy into focusing on not screaming in pure torture. His breathing quickened with every passing moment and he tightened his embrace on the pillow. He just wanted the agony to end, _somehow_.

The pain blossomed suddenly and intensely; a pain that Albireo had never experienced before. He gasped and nearly ripped the pillow covering, his breathing becoming labored and short. Tears filled his eyes and he was literally about to start crying. He didn't wish this kind of pain upon anyone, not even the old enemies he had made in years past; the ones he despised and wished would burn forever in the darkest, hottest corner in Hell. He thought about that for a while and realized that he wanted them to endure something worse… he was in too much pain to go deep in thought.

He moved his face for a slight second and stared at the clock. It was surprisingly 7:00 pm. Time passed by rather quickly on days like this, but when he wanted time to pass, it seemed to stay on the same time for hours and hours and hours. But he was glad… well, as glad as he could be at the moment, to see that the day was almost over and the 7th day was finally almost here.

The 7th day decided whether he lived for another eternity… or died…

If he lived, he would still be pretty sore and weak from his battle with illness, but at least he'd be alive… There'd also be other side effects, but… When he thought about it, death seemed a lot nicer than living.

Another round of pain tore through him and the tears started to fall down his face. "Why can't this just… end," he asked out loud to himself. He curled up into a ball on his bed, being somewhat grateful for his being alone during this episode of agony. If there was anything he didn't want, it was for his comrades to pity him.

The pain intensified tenfold and he started sobbing and crying out for his comrades. They all jumped at the sudden screams. "What the hell was that," Gateau asked.

Eishun and Nagi could hear their names being shouted in a voice that seemed extremely… distressed? Eishun was the first to go running for Albireo's room saying, "It's Al, you dumbasses! IT'S AL!"

Everyone else stormed into the room and saw Albireo writhing on the bed, tears falling down his face. Eishun and Nagi both ran up to the bed. "Al, what's wrong," Eishun asked.

"It hurts… it hurts really bad, make it stop, Eishun… ah! I just want it to stop already…"

Eishun placed a hand on Albireo's tense shoulder. "I can't, Al, I'm sorry..."

Nagi almost wanted to cry at the sight of his friend suffering so much. He was used to Eishun being pretty pathetic, but for Al, _Albireo_ _Imma_, to be reduced to such a state that he's in tears and letting people actually see him like that… that disease could only be described by words that didn't exist. He glanced down at Albireo who made eye contact with Nagi. Nagi could see his red, glossy eyes, filled with pain and hopelessness. Those eyes welled with tears again and closed as he was embraced by Nagi.

"I'm sorry, Al… you've helped me so many times… and the one time you need me… and I can't help you." Albireo's eyes widened and he embraced Nagi, rapidly changing into the soother. He brought up his shaking hands to Nagi's face and cupped them, bringing his friend's face close to his own.

"Please… don't feel like that. I'm already pained enough by this… I don't want you to feel guilty for something… you can't even control." His voice was shaky and soft. He really didn't want Nagi to feel so terrible, but knew he couldn't control it. Nagi hugged Albireo even tighter than before, making sure not to increase the pain, but enough so that Albireo knew his words hit him.

The words hit him and triggered his thought process. What if his friend didn't survive? What if Albireo ended up dead right on this bed, without any of them knowing? What if it was worse and he died in his arms? Nagi could feel the tears fall down his face as he squeezed Albireo tighter, making Albireo wince and groan. "N-Nagi… you're hurting me…"

Nagi didn't let his grip falter. He held firmly onto Albireo, who was trying to get away now. "Nngh… that really hurts, what's the matter, N-"

"Please don't die, Al… promise me you won't die…"

Albireo's eyes softened. "… I promise…"

**__Negima?!__**

Morning arrived and the first to wake up was Nagi. Nagi trudged slowly to the bathroom and to the kitchen to get some tea. Asuna was the second to wake up and she, by habit, went to the bathroom. After she almost followed Nagi into the kitchen, she realized what day it was. She ran down the hall and opened Albireo's door. There on his bed was… him, lying peacefully under the blanket.

Almost like a corpse…

Asuna ran up to the bed and stared at the sleeping man. He didn't move… at all. Panicked, Asuna ran to the kitchen. "NAGI, NAGI!"

"What," he answered sleepily. "What's wrong, Asuna?"

"AL'S NOT BREATHING, NAGI! HE'S DEAD, HE'S DEAD!" Nagi dropped his cup, shattering it into a million pieces. He ran towards the mage's room.

_'No, no, you can't be dead.'_ He could feel the tears run down his face.

_"You can't be dead... YOU PROMISED!"_


	8. Day 7

**The end of the first week has arrived and now we're back to the present! Hope you enjoyed the whole first week flashback and thanks for your reviews yet again. I know that Nippah reviews every time and that makes me feel good :) I'm glad you enjoy the story so much, and I hope you continue to enjoy it :)**

_**I do not own Negima or any of the characters associated with Negima.**_

Nagi stormed into the room and up to the bed. "Don't you dare die… Damn it, Al, if you die, I swear I'm gonna…" Nagi fell to the side of the bed. Asuna followed close behind and sat beside Nagi, tears filling her eyes.

"No… Al, no, he can't die. He's immortal… Al wasn't supposed to die. He was supposed to live and get better… and we'd be Ala Rubra again. Al can't die. He just can't, Nagi, HE CAN'T!" Asuna fell apart in the same way Nagi did, only it was more heart breaking. Asuna was so young and so innocent; to see someone so close and familiar die, when he was supposed to live forever…

Nagi punched the bed angrily and glared at Albireo's motionless form. So lifeless… so static and stiff… like a dead body, waiting to be put into the ground forever. He sobbed along with Asuna and wondered how the rest of the group was still asleep with all the wonder of Al's survival on their minds. "DAMN IT, AL, YOU PROMISED!"

Nagi grabbed Albireo's shirt out of anger and grief, as if he were functional and able to be affected by his tantrum. "You fucking promised…"

"And you should know me well enough to know that I would never break a promise to you…"

Nagi gasped and snapped is head upward to see the face of the familiar voice. That voice that punched him in the balls when he saw whose face it matched; that deep, manly voice that was given to such an androgynous looking man was staring right at him.

"At least not one… as heavy as survival."

Nagi felt the tears fall harder, like little waterfalls. He angrily punched Albireo's shoulder, but pulled him into a hug. "I swear, if you do that again… I'll bring you back to life and kill you myself…"

Albireo giggled softly at the threat. Asuna embraced Albireo from the back side whispering, "I'm glad you're alive…"

"I am too," he whispered back. "Now… let's go surprise the rest of the group. I almost wanted to play a joke on them and scare them, but I figured that wouldn't be nice."

"That would actually be really douchey, Al. You've put us all through enough already."

"Sorry…"

Nagi cursed himself for saying that. "No, I didn't mean that, that way. I'm just saying they're still pretty… you know."

"Yes, yes I know… But let's go see them anyways." Albireo stood slowly from his bed and stumbled a little bit. He hadn't left his bed in days and was extremely stiff. Not to mention how light-headed he became due to the onslaught of actions he performed on his weary body. He swayed a little bit, but nagi caught him and kept his balance.

"Don't go passing out on me, Al. You just woke up."

"Looks like I'll have to get used to this life again, but I'll have to recover first."

"That's ok, we'll be there for you," Asuna said innocently. Albireo smiled at the young girl and ruffled her hair, her blue eyes twinkling with happiness. So much happiness that she forgot about the fact she hated it when people did that to her.

"Thank you, princess… I appreciate that…"

_Thank you… all of you…_

**__Negima?!__**

Negi was close to tears at the end of the story. "That was so… so touching!"

"Why are you crying? Colonel-san lived and he recovered. It wasn't a sad ending!"

"Yes, but my father… he was-"

"Ok, ok, we don't need to talk about him. That bastard was only like that during that week. Once Al was recovering, the two of them went back to their perverted tactics."

"Ohh~ sounded to be like you were pretty scared for Colonel-san too, Eva-chan. C'mon, Eva, just admit it. **_You were worried_**!"

"I WAS NOT! DON'T GO PUTTING DAMN WORDS INTO MY MOUTH!"

"It's ok, Eva-chan, we won't judge you. Well, at least not too badly."

"SHUT THE HELL UP, YOU TWO!"

Setsuna watched as the girls fought and bickered. "I can't believe Colonel-san experienced such a horrible illness."

"The sealing was worse…"

"What sealing?" The others were listening now as well.

"We had to seal Albireo to the magic tree because of a bad setback he had. It was so terrible that it was like reliving the 6th day again. We couldn't bear to see him suffer like that again, so Nagi was forced to seal him there forever… and they haven't seen each other since…"

**_{Flashback}_**

_Nagi stared straight into the eyes of his blue-haired friend. Those girly blue eyes stared deeply into Nagi's soul, with a look of sorrow, yet understanding. He knew what had to be done, but it saddened him as well._

_"It won't be for eternity, Al."_

_"Even if it is, I'll still be around…" Nagi inhaled deeply and embraced Albireo around the neck. Albireo returned the action, tears blinding his vision. _

_"If this is goodbye… for forever… I just want to say thank you… for everything," Nagi exclaimed slowly. "I don't know what I would have become if I hadn't met you…"_

_The last sentence hit Albireo right in the chest. Nagi was influenced by everyone in their group and all the people he had met, but to hear that from someone so easy-going and non-serious. It was so heart-wrenching and touching, Albireo wanted to cry._

_"It won't be goodbye… We'll meet again one day…"_

_"You promise, Al?"_

_Albireo remembered the day he promised Nagi he wouldn't die. "Promise…"_

**_{End Flashback}_**

They arrived at the large building where Albireo resided. The dragon was in there way again, but Takahata stepped forward. "We came here to see Al."

The dragon stared at them, but refused to let them pass. "Why won't he let us pass?"

"It's alright," a voice said from far away. "They can come in."

The dragon nodded and moved out of the group's way. Takahata and Konoemon took the lead, the rest of them following behind, while Evangeline brought up the rear. "Al, where are you?"

"I'm in here…"

"Where's _here_ exactly?"

They walked into the room where the party the students attended was held. The table was empty and the room was extremely clean. "Um, Colonel-sa-."

"What are you all doing up? Did I wake you?"

"Damn right you woke us," Evangeline cut in. "How could anyone sleep with all that magic you keep spewing into the atmosphere. It's fucking dreadful!"

"Oh dear, I'm sorry… I'm afraid that this setback is worse than others, due to how much magic I'm emanating. It also hurts terribly… But I do apologize for waking you all at such a late hour."

"Oh, it's no big deal," Konoka reassured. "We just wanted to make sure you were alright."

"You couldn't even sense it, Konoka," Asuna commented.

"But it's still no big deal, right? Colonel-han didn't meant to wake you all up."

"Yeah, yeah, I know."

"How do you feel, Colonel-san? Is the pain improving any," Negi asked in a concerned tone. Albireo stared at the group in front of him. It was Negi and a smaller version of his posse of students, Takahata, and Konoemon. The image seemed vaguely familiar. Albireo realized what it was and smiled.

"What, why are you smiling, Colonel-san," Setsuna asked.

"You all," he began laughing, "It's like the first week again… and Ala Rubra is fretting over me… I didn't think I'd ever miss that."

He smiled at how similar Negi was to Nagi, Konoka to Eishun, and Takahata to not only his younger self, but to Gateau. He giggled again, but grimaced as the pain set in, scolding him for having fun.

"Uh, Colonel-san?"

"Yes?"

"I was wondering something… if you weren't breathing, how could you just wake up again? Was it all a sick joke," Asuna asked.

"No, I wouldn't joke about something so serious. I really wasn't breathing, but that's because there was so much magic in my system, it was putting pressure on my lungs because it had nowhere else to go. Then I stopped breathing, but because it was the 7th day of my illness and I survived until the exact time of when I first developed it, I started breathing again."

"Oh… that makes sense. We were pretty scared, weren't we?"

"I guess you were… that's something you'd have to ask Nagi. I was dead, remember?"

"Oh, yeah, I forgot."

Albireo smiled and winced again. "Um, are you sure you're ok, Colonel-san?"

"I'm fine I swear. Don't worry about me…" Negi nodded and went back to talking to the others.

"You don't have to put up and act, Al," Takahata whispered. "If you're in pain, just tell us."

"To be honest… I'm in a lot of pain, and it hurts very much so, but I don't want you all to fret over me, Takamichi-kun. Not you, or Asuna-chan, or Konoka-chan, or Setsuna-chan, or Negi-kun… They don't need that right now."

"Yeah, but-"

"You all should go back upstairs and go to sleep."

"Are you sure? Can we even sleep if you're still spewing magic left and right?"

Albireo sweat-dropped at the comment Asuna made. "Sorry, but it should be dying down a little bit. You all can come back after school tomorrow, if you'd like."

"Ok." And they all left. Except for Evangeline…

"What's the matter, Kitty?" Albireo gasped sarcastically. "Don't tell me you're worried and you've stayed to nurse me back to health?"

"Oh shut up, you old man. I'm staying because I want to for me… and you have good food here."

"If I'm an old man, then you're an old hag, Kitty."

"I AM NOT AN OLD HAG!"

"Oh yes you are~"

"SHUT THE HELL UP!"

"Nope... 3~" Evangeline's eyebrow twitched as she turned around.

"I'm leaving…"

"Bye Kitty~" And she slammed the door shut. Albireo giggled and lay back down on the couch. His stomachache was worsening and he didn't understand why. The pain wasn't sharp, but it was always there. It was a dull ache, but it still bothered him and made him extremely uncomfortable. With a sigh he sat down on the couch, and set his tea cup down. Hoping that the tree would ease the pain and magic increasing in his system, he slowly felt his eyelids grow heavier, until he had dozed off.

Little did he know that the tree was going to do more harm than help…


	9. A Distraction

** New Chapter :D! Thanks for sticking with me if you have I love you guys, and if you've reviewed, thanks again and I love you too 3! I'm about 99.99% sure this is the last chapter of the actual story, but I'm going to write and Epilogue. I hope you all enjoyed this story :) I loved writing it. Enjoy this chapter c**:

_**I don't own Negima**_

The next day came around and Negi and the others were at school and going on with their day. Negi would teach, like any teacher would, and the students would learn as best as they could. Negi would glance at the class every now and then, making sure they were at least not falling asleep. He took another glance at the class and saw the looks on his usual group member's faces. Asuna was about to fall asleep, Setsuna was cautious and paying attention, Konoka was happy as always, Nodoka was being shy and flustered. It seemed pretty normal for them.

Except Evangeline of all people.

She was looking out the window, not paying attention to Negi at all; that part was normal. But she looked bothered, frustrated, and… troubled. Negi was visibly shocked and alarmed at her sudden change of mood because Evangeline wasn't the type of person to fret over things. She forgot and that was that. However, at least by the look of things, something was on her mind and it bothered her in a way that really pissed her off. It happened to be something that exists to piss Evangeline off, so Negi at least knew that.

The day went on normally, but just as class was finally getting into the last subject of the day, there was a sudden surge of magic. Negi stopped speaking and the class fell to an awkward silence.

"What's wrong, Negi-sensei," Akira asked.

"Oh, nothing… sorry, girls, I guess I'm just not myself today."

"Why not," Fuka asked.

"Yeah, why not," her sister asked right after.

"I'm not sure. I just get a feeling of uneasiness every once in a while." The girls shrugged and he continued to speak to the class. The lesson continued on and there was another surge of magic, only this time it was sensed by some of the girls.

"What was that," Yue asked.

"Yeah, I sensed it too," Asuna commented. "It seemed like-"

"On with the rest of the lesson, ladies," Negi cut in and went on with the lesson. After about twenty minutes of that, he stopped reading aloud to the class and started to explain the homework. He made it to the end of the explanation and just as the girls were packing up to leave and head back to their room or after school activities, yet another wave of magic swept across the Mahora Academy Campus. This time all the girls could tell it was there.

"Woah, what the hell was that," Kazumi questioned, Sayo nodding in agreement to the question.

"I felt that too. I felt like I was being suffocated," Madoka panicked.

"I know right," Misa agreed with the same level of alarm as classmate. The girls all started to buzz with excitement and fright. Negi realized how he wasn't going to be able to control the class again and started to freak out just like poor Negi always did.

"That's enough, girls," Ayaka shouted, saving Negi just in time. "Now, I know this is strikes curiosity in all of your feeble little minds, but don't lose control of yourselves; it upsets Negi-sensei!"

"Oh shut up, Ayaka. We should go see what's causing all this," Haruna suggested. The other girls agreed and began to cheer.

"N-no, that's not a good idea, girls!"

"And why not?"

"Um, b-because… it could be dangerous."

"Well, if you come with us Negi, then we can all use our pactios and defeat whoever's so dangerous."

"THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!"

"OH, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, IT'S AL!" The girls all turned to Evangeline.

"What do you mean, Eva-chan?"

"You know him as Colonel-san, but I don't call him by that name because it pisses me off. Anyways, he's the reason for the sudden rushes of magical energy. He's got a problem with that stuff and it's not a big deal; just leave it be and stop being so damn annoying."

"We're not annoying," Sakurako snapped.

"No, not all of you, but the majority of you are very irritating. So just shut the hell up."

"Don't be like that Eva-chan," Asuna said sarcastically. "Besides, we all know you've had Colonel-san on your mind since you got here this morning."

"I HAVE NOT!"

"Anyways, we should go see Colonel-san. I was told by Takahata-sensei that he really likes company since he doesn't get it very often."

"But Evangeline said he had a problem," Chizuru commented, "Would he like company if something's wrong with him at the moment?"

"Sure he would, now let's go!" The girls all raced out of the room.

"WAIT FOR ME, GIRLS!" Negi ran after them quickly, and they were off on their trip to the innards of Library Island.

**_Negima?!**(ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ***:･ﾟ✧****._**

The class of 3-A went walking down to Library Island, talking and chatting as if nothing was wrong, which there really wasn't. They arrived to where the dragon was and saw him yet again. He didn't stand in their way at all and moved without hesitation. They walked in and looked around in awe, despite some having been there before a few times, but others were seeing the amazing underground home for the first time.

"Where's Colonel-san?"

"I'm not sure-" They were unexpectedly taken aback by another surge of magic, the magic tree in front of them glowing brightly, more so than before.

"So this magic was coming from the tree… Why is there magic coming from the tree and why can we sense it? I thought you said this was from Colonel-san, Evangeline?"

"It is; I don't know why there's magic coming from the tree." Evangeline gasped at her sudden realization. "He didn't!"

"Who didn't?"

Evangeline started to walk faster into the area with the large table and couches. "Where is that bastard?" She pushed over chairs and knocked plants off the tables they sat on. Things broke left and right in the path of dark Evangeline.

"DAMN IT, WHERE ARE YOU ALBIREO IMMA?!"

"It's rather rude to come into someone's home and just start breaking all their things, now isn't it?" Evangeline turned at the deep voice behind her. She angrily punched him in the face and grabbed his shirt, almost ripping it with her fingernails.

"Are you an idiot? You cast another seal, didn't you?"

"Yes, I did."

"Why the hell would you do that? Not only does that cause you more pain, but it's dangerous for anyone to do, even you!"

"I didn't realize you would be so concerned, Kitty~ your apprehension makes me feel warm and fuzzy with love~!"

"OH SHUT IT, YOU PERVERT!"

Albireo started laughing at her anger, but the magic tree rose quickly with magical energy and Albireo stopped dead in his tracks. He didn't move, breathe, blink, or talk.

"Uh, Colonel-san," Nodoka asked quietly. "Are you alright?"

Albireo's eyes rolled back into his head and he began to fall backwards. The girls gasped and called out his name, but to no avail. Asuna, thankfully, managed to grab him before he collapsed to the ground. She heaved him over to a couch where she laid him down gently. Konoka ran up to the couch and knelt beside him.

"He looks worse than yesterday…" She brushed his sweaty bangs from his forehead with her fingertips. "A lot worse…"

"I put another seal on himself," Evangeline explained. "The tree must not have been helping."

"Why does he need the tree," Chizuru asked.

"He was sealed here ten years ago because of a magic disease that he suffered not too long before. Magic builds up in his system and attacks the body because it thinks what's actually helping Albireo to live is killing him. It causes excruciating pain wherever you get it."

"And he just never completely recovered from it," Asuna added.

"That's because we immortals don't need what you puny humans need to survive," Evangeline scoffed. Asuna mockingly repeated what she said and turned away from her and back to Albireo. She placed a cool hand on his forehead when she noticed how flushed his face had become.

"He's burning up, guys. I think we should get someone like Professor Takahata to help out."

"Oh you'd just love that, wouldn't you Asuna?"

"What are you trying to say, priss?"

"Professor Takahata coming down here isn't for Colonel-san, it's for you."

"NO IT'S NOT!" And they began to fight like usual. Negi attempted to calm them down, but failed once again. The loudness of the two friends enemies made Albireo stir on the couch.

_Is there someone here?_ All he saw was darkness. Suddenly there was a rush of white, and then blurry figures. They moved and made sound. _Who's down here? _It almost seemed like Ala Ru-

"Colonel-san, you're waking up," Konoka whispered to him. He glanced up at the voice and saw Konoka, a familiar face. Relieved, he continued to glance around the room and saw there were more girls. It would've been a dream come true, if he didn't feel so gross. He realized that they had been down there before he passed out, but he just couldn't remember. Sickness aged Albireo mentally a few centuries.

"Why are you all here?"

"We came here to make sure you were alright," Kaede said. "Your magic was a little distracting."

Albireo smiled at yet another familiar face. "My deepest apologies to you all; but I must ask why you _all_ came here?"

"It was just our class being the usual class 3-A…" He smiled and sat up.

"I'm glad to see you girls are still the same." The two stopped and turned around. All the girls started walking towards him and Albireo's face screamed confusion. They all had gifts and they handed them to him. He received blankets, clothes, food, candy, and medicines; everything you could possibly think of. Maybe not that much, but you know, exaggerations happen.

"Um… thank you, girls… I didn't know you went out of your to do this."

"Think of it as a thank you present for making one of Negi's biggest dreams come true."

Albireo smiled at the students. It wasn't his usual Cheshire smile, or a creepy smile with creepy thoughts. The smile was truly genuine. "Well, I'm glad that Negi-kun has a class that cares so deeply for him. I'm sure his father would be proud to know that such a kind and beautiful group of girls cared for his son… Very, very proud…"

The girls all smiled and blushed at the compliment, but Asuna and Evangeline cringed a little. They knew the hidden meaning behind those last words, and it showed how much the two old allies shared in common.

"They're just alike," Asuna said with a small grin on her face. She was vaguely remembering the first week and what it was like to travel around with Ala Rubra. It was sad, and a little scary at times, but it made her feel happy.

Evangeline rolled her eyes. "Yeah, too much alike…"


	10. Epilogue

**Last chapter of this story. It's kind of bittersweet. I truly loved writing this story, and seeing it end is just sad. But I'm glad I'm done. Although, I didn't even put all of my ideas into this one story. Maybe I could write another story. Meh, I don't know :P. Thanks to all of you who stayed with me through this story, and all of you who reviewed, and my thank you present is the chapter that's like 4 times longer than all the other chapters. Happy reading :)**

**I don't own Negima.**

It had been quite a while since the whole class of 3-A saw their old friend "Colonel Sanders", aka, Albireo Imma. The girls, and Negi, had all grown up and gone on with life, becoming successful and happy. Some of the girls had seen Ala Rubra before as adults, and even Nagi was there. Seeing their comrade's father with all of his comrades was quite the surprise, but also very enjoyable.

The other girls who hadn't gone that time had taken time off from their busy schedules to go visit their old friends and comrades, as well as the members of Ala Rubra. For some, it would be the first time seeing them all in person at one time, and for others, it would be just another friendly visit.

The girls all walked happily along with Negi in front, leading them. He walked around a corner and saw that no one was there. "Uh, father?"

"Negi, have you seen Nagi and Al?" Negi turned around and saw Eishun and Jack.

"No, I haven't, why?"

"We can't find them anywhere. They haven't shown up yet and we were supposed to meet here almost an hour ago."

"I'll bet they're doing some naughty things," Konoka giggled to Asuna.

"Don't even talk about it, Konoka," she said trying to wipe that thought from her mind. "Nagi looks too much like Negi for me to think about that."

Konoka laughed harder. "I'm sure they're just taking their own time. Why don't we just go find them ourselves?"

Konoka started walking in one direction. "But where would they be?"

Konoka stopped and laughed nervously. "I don't... really know…"

"I think I might know," Asuna said looking at Negi. She took off in a different direction and her former classmates, as well as the rest of Ala Rubra followed her. She ended up walking to the old room where Albireo resided for so long. It was still as beautiful as ever and she stood there.

"I'll bet they're both in here." Just as she said that, she heard two male voices.

"C'mon, Al, just tell me what's wrong."

"I already told you, like, a million times!"

"Then just stay down here. They'll understand-"

"I don't care if they understand; I want to go up there myself. It's my problem, Nagi, not yours."

"You've made it my problem!"

"_You_ made my problem your problem…"

Nagi rolled his eyes and sighed heavily. Before he could say anything back, Eishun walked in the room. "What's going on with you two?"

"Al's being stubborn."

"When is Al not stubborn," he replied smiling slightly. Albireo sent him a death glare that masked how truly amused he was.

"Fine, if you want me to stay down here, then I'll stay."

"Why would you stay?"

"Because he told me that he wasn't feeling 100% today."

"Not one 100% could be a lot of things, Nagi. It could be 99%-"

"Or 1%."

"Wait," Eishun cut in, "what exactly is wrong, Al?"

Albireo hesitated before answering. He didn't want everyone to worry over him because he wasn't feeling too great, but he knew he had to say something since Nagi already spilled. "It's back…"

"What's back?"

"The Magus Morbo… It's never happened, but it's back. I don't know what it could do because even I've never seen this happen… But with a relapse of any illness, its symptoms worsen considerably."

The two men's eyes widened. Their friend was sick again, and because it came back, that means it was going to be worse, which means… he may not survive this time. Eishun was racking his brain at the thought. "This never ever came back if someone survived it," Eishun said to himself. "Then again, there's a first for everything."

They looked so confused and worried that Albireo couldn't help but burst into a fit of laughter. The hilarity bewildered them even more so. "What the hell are you laughing at, Al?!"

"I was just kidding about all of that… Even though it's inexplicable, it's actually impossible for Magus Morbo to come back." Nagi and Eishun looked extremely irritated by their friend's games. "I know this for sure; I'm skilled in healing magic after all."

Nagi pouted and grabbed Albireo by his shirt. "YOU'RE AN ASSHOLE, YOU KNOW THAT AL?!"

"Indeed I do~"

Nagi's eyebrows twitched in annoyance. Albireo had always been one to joke around, even at people's expense. It was a trait that was funny most of the time, but it was frustrating in times like this. To Evangeline, it was the most annoying thing in the world, and Albireo used it to his advantage all the time.

"So I suppose you were kidding about everything, huh; just wanted to play a little game?"

"Well, not completely. You managed to catch me about not feeling well, but everything else was just kind of a game. It seemed fun, since all you all ever do is worry over me."

Nagi pouted again. "Then why don't you feel well?"

"It's just a setback… I was just doing to suck it up and get over it."

Nagi sighed and grabbed his friend's wrist. "Don't be stupid, Al. C'mon, we brought a couple visitors."

"Damn, what's taking them so long?"

"Maybe Konoka's dad caught them in the act," Kazumi said giggling. Negi blushed at the thought of his father… and Colonel-sa-

"Don't worry, we weren't doing anything along those lines," Albireo said from the doorway. "Besides, if we were, I wouldn't bother trying to keep quiet about it."

The girls all blushed and giggled amongst themselves. Albireo smiled at the image of the old class 3-A, now grown up, in front of him. He remembered like it was only yesterday when they were young and enthusiastic. The enthusiasm was still present, but they all matured… well, at least physically.

"It's nice to see _all_ of you this time," he said walking towards them.

"Colonel-han!" Konoka ran up to him and embraced him around the neck. "It's so good to see you!"

"You just saw me earlier today, Konoka-chan," he said smiling.

"I still like seeing you, Colonel-han; you haven't changed at all."

"And I never will." Konoka continued to hug him and talk to him, while the other girls all surrounded him.

"It sure has been a while, hasn't it," Kaede said to him.

"Indeed it has," he replied. "You all have grown up so much. You're all very beautiful… not that you weren't beautiful before~"

They all blushed and smiled at the compliment. "But then there's Evangeline…" Evangeline sent death glares at her old friend enemy.

"And just what do you mean by that, you perverted eggplant?"

"Everything you'd expect, Kitty. You haven't changed, just like I haven't changed. It's too bad that you still look like a ten year old though-"

"YOU KNOW SOMETHING, DAMMIT-"

"I know many things, but what do you expect me to know, Kitty?"

"I'LL KILL YOU!"

"Now, that would be quite the accomplishment, wouldn't it? Come now, Kitty, you know you're beautiful…" Evangeline's gaze softened in the slightest bit at the compliment. "Though, not as attractive as your old classmates…"

"THAT'S IT!" Evangeline jumped towards Albireo, but was stopped by a hand.

"My, my, my, your temper has changed just as much as your looks. While you _are_ not as evil, you are still the hot-headed little Kitty that chases after men hundreds of years younger than she is herself."

Evangeline felt the anger in her system boil. She could take his teasing any day, but not when-

"The Thousand Master is here, and you just lose it don't you?" She turned to Nagi, who was off talking to some of the other girls in Negi's old class 3-A. "There's no need for that, you know…"

"She really needs to get a grip," Jack said sighing. "I mean, you're never going to fall for her, Nagi, at least, while you're still alive."

"SHUT THE FUCK UP, JACK!" She would take care of him later.

She began to calm down when Albireo's hand tensed. Evangeline noticed the action and stared at him. "And what's wrong with you?" Albireo glanced at his hand, then at the magic tree, and then at his hand again.

"Nothing… it's nothing…" He brought his hand down and smiled at her; the smile that was usually plastered onto his face and worn day after day after day.

"Hey Al," Asuna said. Albireo turned around and met her gaze with his own. His eyes were becoming very glossy and glazed over. As he stared at her, he could see his vision grow more and more blurry. _Oh no…_

"Al, what's up, what are you doing just standing there?" Albireo continued to stare at her. He meant it in the most normal way possible, but he was wondering why he felt so different all of a sudden.

"Al," Nagi said after Asuna. "Al, are you ok?"

Albireo rubbed his eyes and shook his head, feeling how hot his face was getting. It took a slight edge off the discomfort, but he knew it'd be back. The pain was starting to worsen, but not like it worsened before. It was growing quickly, very quickly; the spasm never intensified so fast. The pain also felt different. It was usually dull and grew to be painful, and then it was persistent. But this was different; it was acute and sharp. It was unbearable from the start.

The weird feeling disappeared, but the pain lingered. It always stayed for a while, but it seemed weird. As he thought about it, he stopped paying attention to the company around him. He was ripped from his thought process when a hand met painfully with his back. "Hey Al, we're going upstairs, if you wanna come, you can, if you're feeling up to it."

Albireo winced and held his back. The slightest tap made the ache in his stomach explode. A few of the girls took mind of that and turned their attention to Albireo. "Hey, Colonel-san… are you ok, did I hurt you?"

He shook his head despite the spasm running rampant up and down his torso. He thought the usual symptoms he had to endure once a setback got really bad were going to affect him, like the bad pain, nausea, a sudden rush of heat in his face, and then dizziness. But that was different too; the nausea was so intense, it sent pain up to his chest, and he was dizzy since he woke up that morning. Wait, but that had happened before as well… Then what seems so different? Albireo thought to himself.

Albireo yawned as his train of thought kept moving on the tracks. Suddenly, he realized what was bothering him so badly.

"Hey, what's wrong, Colonel-san," Nodoka asked quietly as ever.

He sighed to himself and yawned again. When he exhaled, he saw a blue mist come from his mouth. "I know what's so… different," he said mid-yawn.

"What's different; different about what," asked Negi.

"This setback… it seemed different… but I know why now," Albireo's eyelids. "It's because I'm so…" Albireo swayed a little while standing. Eishun grabbed Albireo before he lost complete balance.

"So… sleepy…" Albireo's eyelids drooped and he fell towards the floor. Before Eishun could realize what just happened and before anyone could reach him, he fell to the floor and fell _hard_.

"COLONEL-SAN!"

"AL?!" Nagi and Eishun knelt beside him. Jack rushed towards them as well. He remembered seeing Albireo the first week of his illness.

_He wasn't in the best shape when Jack stopped by unpleasantly (he actually was planning on "sparring" with Nagi that day. Sparring was just his code for almost killing, if not succeeding in doing so.) But Nagi and the others were busy; that's all they said. He noticed that Albireo Imma, the one with the blue hair and the girly face, wasn't with them, which seemed strange. He was always with them, smiling in the back. _

_Always smiling._

_When he was rejected his killing sparring match, he turned the walk away when he heard the window open and there was the man with blue hair. Albireo Imma. He looked noticeably weaker, but he still smiled at him. _

_"Hello, Jack…"_

Jack returned from his flashback and stared at his old ally. His face was exceptionally red, and he wouldn't wake up at the sound of his friends' voices. Albireo always awoke immediately at the sound of a familiar voice, except when he was sick, which didn't happen often, until that day seventeen years ago. "Wake up, Al, don't go scaring everyone here."

"C'mon, Al, wake up already." Nagi shook his friend until he opened his eyes. It took a while, but he managed to do so, and Albireo glanced around the room. "See, he's coming to; I know what I'm doing Eishun!"

"Al," Eishun said ignoring Nagi. "Are you ok?"

Albireo glanced at the blurry figures. He recognized them, but not well. "Yeah," he whispered.

"No you're not," Asuna shouted. "You just passed out and now you're acting like you barely know us."

"He's just out of it, Asuna," Negi replied to her. "He'll be ok once he recovers from this."

Albireo did so faster than expected and he even sat up on his own. He stared at the group of girls in front of him, with their worried faces and expressions. He felt a stab of guilt at the sight of their faces.

"Listen, Al, we're going to put you in bed. You've gotten pretty bad." Albireo gave objection, but seemed slightly sad that he had to go and lie down. Konoka noticed the unusual expression on his face, and walked up to him.

"Aw, it'll be ok, Colonel-han," Konoka said patting his shoulder gently. "Don't be upset; we'll be ok, you didn't ruin anything."

"Yeah, and you don't have to be sad, we'll wait for you if you like," Asuna replied and all the girls chimed in.

"Yeah, of course we will!"

"It would be unfair to leave Colonel-san behind during our party."

Albireo smiled and stood up from the ground. "Thank you, but you all don't have to do that… I'll be fi-" Albireo almost fell back to the ground, but Nagi caught him. The girls all stared worriedly at him once again. He felt awful, making them worry like that. He hated worrying people, but he tended to do it often.

"I'm sorry… I'm ruining your reunion. Please, enjoy yourselves, since it's your first time seeing each other in years. Don't let me hold you back."

"But Colonel-san, we want make sure you alright," Ku Fei said in her _still_ broken English.

"I know you do, but I am alright, so please go and actually have a reu-" Albireo stopped midsentence and suddenly started emanating magical energy. The sudden surge in magic took a harsh, immediate toll, in which Albireo began convulsing. The girls were so taken aback by the magic that they didn't notice Albireo's sudden other actions. His old allies panicked at his convulsions, except Eishun, who had seen this happen before, except for different reasons and in different people. He turned Albireo onto his side, while lying down.

"Why is he suddenly convulsing like this?" He stared at Albireo, like he would have the answer. But he surprisingly did. He saw the markings all over Albireo's body as they lit up and how his eyes were glowing with gold light.

"His seal… it's breaking."

"Breaking; like the seal we put on him a while back?"

"Yes, the one that bound him here. It weakened considerably and now it's snapped. We can't let this happen…"

"Why not, that seal was a pain in the ass for him?"

"It will harm his body, Nagi! He'll suffer significant damage if we let this continue; he's probably already hurt by this."

"OK, I'll seal it again… but it won't be as bad as the past one."

"That's fine, just do it."

Nagi spoke Latin aloud as a seal appeared on the ground below them. Nagi knelt beside Albireo's seizing body; his face was reddening and his eyes were wide. Nagi's eyes softened. "Al, I don't know if you can hear me, but I'm just gonna tell you…" Albireo arched his back as if he were possessed by a demon, resulting in more magical power to be emitted from him.

"This is gonna hurt like hell…"

Nagi slammed both hands on Albireo's chest. At first, Albireo relaxed and the seizing stopped. Nagi whispered a few more Latin words, and before he said the last term, he gazed at his friend with compassion. "I'm sorry, Al..."

He shouted the last term and Albireo screamed. It didn't sound just like his voice, there were multiple voices. A shrill voice, and a deep voice; a male voice, and a female's voice; it was as inhuman as a voice could get. Nagi stared at his agonized friend, all of his focus centered on him. He didn't want to mess up the seal, because if he did, it would end badly for the blue-haired mage.

For what seemed like forever, the seal was being placed on Albireo, but after only a mere 3 minutes, it ended and Albireo completely went limp on the ground. His face was red and drenched in sweat, but he seemed at peace, for once in the past few hours. His breathing was normal, and a puff of blue mist could be seen once in a while, but he seemed normal.

"He's asleep," Eishun said. "Sorry you ladies had to witness that."

"Holy crap, what the hell happened to him," Kazumi asked in shock.

"The seal went berserk and took liberties with Al's body. He started seizing due to the seal breaking, but Nagi sealed him again and saved the day."

"Oh, it was nothing. I learned a new seal at some point and this time it doesn't bind him to this one place… It binds him to the tree, but only so much that the tree helps tame the setbacks. Without the tree, his setbacks would always be unbearable."

Nagi swayed as he stood. "Nagi, are you hurt?"

"No, I'm not hurt… just a little tired."

"Placing that seal in your state must have put a lot of strain on you. You go ahead and rest while we put Al to bed."

"Yeah, let the ladies take care of ya. I'm sure they'll enjoy that," Jack said picking up Albireo. The immortal man didn't move at all, but instead stayed fast asleep. They took Albireo back to a room with a bed and gently placed him onto it. They covered him with the blanket and stared at him for a while. He was so still and peaceful, Eishun wondered if this was what it would've been like if he had died the first onset of this illness.

"So what do we do now?"

"Wait," Eishun said shrugging.

"I know that, dumbass; I meant what do we do with the girls? They saw something you don't witness every day."

"Let them recover for a while, and then ask what they wish to do." Eishun and Jack walked over to the door. Eishun took a second look back at his friend who was still asleep, in the same position as he was just a few seconds ago. He closed the door and walked back to the company that awaited him in the main dining area.

**__Negima?!__**

Hours passed and Nagi eventually fell asleep. The girls brought all the things they were going to use for their party down to the library, and began their reunion. They played games, ate food, and talked, making sure to catch up with each other. The girls still seemed the same around each other, especially Ayaka and Asuna. They were fighting and arguing as if they hadn't grown up at all.

"Do you two ever stop fighting," Konoka asked mid-laughter. The two of them didn't answer and continued to fight. The girls went on with their business when Negi entered the room. Ayaka suddenly stopped fighting with Asuna and she ran over to him.

"Negi, are you ok?"

"Well, yes, I am… why do you ask, class rep?"

She smiled at how her old professor still called her 'Class Rep'. "With all that has happened today, I just wanted to make sure you were ok."

"Well, thank you very much, but I'm fine. That was a startling experience, but all that matters is he's alright, right?"

She smiled and nodded. They began talking again and started another game. When the game was starting to get intense (at least to Asuna and Ayaka), Nagi, Eishun, and Jack came into the room.

"Well, look at that. You guys look exactly like you did back when you were actually in school." The all turned and all eyes landed on Nagi. They got up from where they were sitting, kneeling, or whatever they were doing, and ran up to him.

"Nagi, you're awake!" They all asked him question after question and they were all the same questions being repeated by different people. He eventually stopped answering the same questions over and over again, and went to sit down on a couch.

"So what were you all doing?"

"Playing poker."'

"Why were you playing that?"

"We're adults, Nagi, we do what we want!"

"Ha ha, yes, I know," he said laughing, "I was the exact same way when I finally became an adult."

They continued playing until Misa Kakizaki wiped them off the table. They all threw down their cards. "I give up, she's too good."

"How about I give it a try," Nagi said sitting down at the table. "I'll bet I could knock you down a few pegs."

"You're on, pops."

"Pops? Now, I wouldn't go _that_ far…" The two of them played the game alone, and Nagi mopped the floor with her.

"How are you that good?"

"I learned how to be that good… you're just lucky."

"I have some skill," she said pouting. "But seriously, no one's that good unless they have a pretty intense gambling addiction."

"Well, I don't have that. I just learned how to get really good at Poker."

"Who taught you?"'

"Al did."

"Colonel-san taught you how to play Poker," Setsuna asked.

"Yep, we didn't have anything to do one day, so he just pulled out a deck of cards and taught me. Al's a boss at Poker."

"I can't see him as much of a gambler. He seems really effeminate…" Ala Rubra laughed at the comment.

"Well, he uses that to his advantage. He's gone gambling before and won things because men have thrown in their cards."

"Wait, so they think Colonel-san a woman," Ku asked.

They all nodded. There were a number of times Albireo had been mistaken for a woman due to his epicene appearance. He had been hit on, taken to dinner, seduced, and even proposed to in his centuries of living. He had turned them all down, except the dinners, and ended up breaking the men's hearts when they found out he was actually a man. Every story he would tell Ala Rubra became funnier and funnier.

"Speaking of Colonel-san how is he?"

"Probably still asleep; I haven't seen him in hours."

"Shouldn't someone check on him," Ako asked.

"We can if you ladies would like to. I'm sure he's fine, he's probably still sacked out." Ala Rubra was followed by Ala Alba. When Eishun turned around and saw the whole group of girls, he stopped.

"I think some of you should come, not all of you… It's not good to startle Al like that after a seal like that breaking." There were a few "Aw's" and "C'mon's" but Eishun stood on his words.

"Nagi, you pick who comes with us."

"Why me?" Eishun glared at him and Nagi sighed.

"Fine." Nagi grabbed his son's wrist. "Negi's coming for sure… now Negi picks."

"Uh… I pick Asuna."

"I pick Konoka." And of course Konoka picked Setsuna. That's as much as they allowed and they led them all to the room where Albireo was. He wasn't in the same position, which meant he moved in his sleep and he was sleeping normally instead of his former comatose state.

"Colonel-han, can you hear me?" Konoka walked up to the bed and brushed the sweaty bangs from his forehead. His face was still red and covered with sweat, but his eyes fluttered open just barely. He glanced in different directions with a look of confusion on his face. He mumbled something the rest of them couldn't understand, but Konoka put a cool hand on his forehead.

"Everything's alright, Colonel-han… you can go back to sleep if you're tired." Albireo blinked a few times and closed his eyes, taking in the chilled feeling. He opened his eyes again, this time he was more focused.

"How'd I get here?"

"Your seal broke, Al. You started seizing and everything; we had to re-seal you back to the tree, but you're ok now, right?" He nodded slowly and glanced at Nagi.

"Are you ok," he whispered.

"Hell yeah, don't worry about me, Al." Albireo smiled and sat up a little.

"Are you sure…?"

"Positive; I'm fine."

Albireo smiled in satisfaction of his answer. He was far too exhausted to argue, so if Nagi said he was ok, then he was ok. "Where is everyone?"

"Outside, waiting for you to wake up; they brought their reunion down here just in case something was to happen to you, good or bad."

"How… nice," he whispered. He couldn't remember the last time a group of more than Ala Rubra cared about him so much. He almost didn't know how to react to it. He winced at a pain in his abdomen, plus the pain of how sore he was.

"Are you up for visitors, Colonel-san," Negi asked. Albireo only smiled at him.

"I'm always up for visitors, Negi-kun." Negi let the girls into the room. Fuka and Fumika ran up to the bed and embraced Albireo around the neck and waist.

"Colonel-san, are you ok? That must have been scary," Fumika said in her usual tone.

"Yeah, it looked painful too. Hey, you still have the blanket we got you! Look Fumika, he has the blanket!"

Albireo smiled at the girls. They changed very little from their old personalities. I mean hey, they got excited over a blanket. "Yes, I kept all the gifts you ladies gave me," he said pulling Fuka off his neck. "Except the food… I ate that rather quickly."

"Man, Colonel-san, you really scared us," Yuna said leaning on the bed. "I had no idea that could even happen to people."

"I'm sure you've seen worse, Yuna-chan… It happens to important seals like that when they break suddenly. I don't remember a thing, so I wasn't scared at all."

"How do you not remember?"

"He was seizing for a good 7 minutes, Yuna," Ako said. "Most people don't remember having seizures."

"Well, you better not plan on doing that again anytime soon, Colonel-san," Ayaka said pointing her finger in his face.

"Believe me, I don't plan on anything like that for a while," he said prying Fumika off his waist. Just as he finally loosened her grip and she got up, Asuna embraced him gently.

"I'm just glad you're ok," she whispered in his ear. "I'm glad you're alive."

Albireo's eyes widened slightly at the words. She recovered those memories a while back, and seeing his sudden "episode" probably brought on flashbacks.

He ruffled her orange hair, the way he used to back when she was just a young girl.

"I am too…"


End file.
